


SQW Summer 2K17

by bi_swan_trash



Series: Swan Queen Weeks [4]
Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Divorced mommies, F/F, Falling In Love, Family Vacation, Grandmothers, MILFs, Swan Queen Week, Trapped, mommy in love, parent trap, sharing a child
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-09
Updated: 2017-07-15
Packaged: 2018-11-29 22:31:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 5,738
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11450394
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bi_swan_trash/pseuds/bi_swan_trash
Summary: All of my works for the 2017 Summer Swan Queen Week!





	1. Sharing A(nother) Child

Regina awoke to a knocking at her door. She looked at the clock and saw that it was in the early morning hours. She put on a robe and padded down the stairs. She opened the door to find a disheveled Emma outside her door.

“Emma?” Regina was taken aback not only by the hour, but by her friend’s– they were still friends right? – appearance.

Emma stood on the front porch looking forlorn and as if she couldn’t decide if she was welcome or not.

“Emma, please come inside,” Regina said softly.

She did as she was told, and Regina led her to the couch in the living room.

“What’s the matter?” Regina asked, trying to give Emma some space.

They hadn’t spoken much since the wedding and the aftermath. Once Gideon was a baby again and the Black Fairy destroyed, Emma and Hook went onto their honeymoon. When they came back, Hook had the audacity to think he had the right to ask if Henry could stay with them during the week and only stay with Regina on weekends so that he and Henry could “bond more.”

Regina hadn’t taken to that too kindly.

She all but castrated the pirate and told Emma she was free to see Henry as much or as little as she pleased, but Hook was not to be with Henry alone under any circumstances. Regina had tried to get past her feelings about Hook, but every time she looked at him she felt resounding electricity jolt through her body as if she was being tortured by Owen again. She looked past it enough for Emma to marry him– she was an adult and Regina could not set boundaries for her– but she would not do the same when it came to the safety of her son. It had been almost a year since the outburst and the two woman barely exchanged words anymore, making this visit even more peculiar.

“He’s gone,” Emma said in almost a whisper.

“What?” Regina asked, shocked. “What happened? Where did he go?”

Emma shrugged. “Away.”

“You didn’t answer my first question.”

“He’s not ready for a family,” Emma told her.

“After he nearly begged to adopt Henry?” Regina said, trying to keep the venom out of her voice.

“I guess he figured Henry would be easy. You’ve already raised him,” Emma said.

“Well, he would’ve found out different,” Regina assured her, “he’s going through quite the moody phase right now.”

Emma gave a soft smile. “I know. I did the same thing at fifteen.” She looked Regina in the eye for the first time since arriving. “Sorry about that.”

Regina shrugged. “It’s what mothers do for their children.”

The two sat in silence for a few moments.

“You wanted to start a family with him, then I presume?” Regina asked gently.

Emma started to laugh softly, “it’s not like I had a choice.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m already pregnant.”

Regina lost composure for a second, the wheels turning in her brain as everything clicked into place. “I’ll find that son of a bitch and-”

Emma reached out and grasped Regina’s balled up fists. “Regina. Please. It’s over. He’s gone. I just… I came over because I needed to not be alone.”

“And… and you chose to come here?” Regina asked.

“I know it’s selfish. Especially since I’m the one who dropped our communication. But I miss you and as shitty as it is, I knew you’d be her for me.” Emma realized she’d been holding Regina’s hands and quickly pulled away.

“Well you’re right,” Regina told her, “I’m here for you. Anything you need, I’ll help you.”

A look crossed Emma’s face that was equal parts annoyed and grateful.

“What?”

“Why are you so eagerly willing to help me?” Emma asked. “I’ve been horrible and you owe me absolutely nothing.”

“You’re my friend,” Regina said softly reaching out to squeeze Emma’s shoulder, “and you’re Henry’s other mother. And I… I’d do anything for you.”

“I’m scared to raise this baby alone,” Emma confessed, tears starting to fall.

“Oh, Emma,” Regina forwent space and pulled Emma into the crook of her neck the way she did for Henry when he had nightmares and bad days. “Don’t be scared. I’ll be here with you.”

“You promise?” Emma asked in a small voice.

“I promise.”

***

For seven months Regina kept her promise and assured Emma that even after the baby was born she was in this for the long haul. Regina only hesitated once, right after Penelope was born, and she was born with a thick head of jet black hair like her father. But then she looked at Emma, who was looking at her with those worried eyes, and just beamed.

“She’s beautiful, Emma,” Regina told her, smoothing down some of the wild tufts of Penny’s hair.

Emma reached for Regina’s hand and squeezed, causing Regina’s heart to flutter a little faster.

 _Yes,_ she thought, _I’m ready to be the mother of Emma’s child again._


	2. MILF

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What happens when some teenage hooligans call Regina a MILF?

“Okay, Nova, Ruby Lucas, and Mayor Mills,” Gabe challenged.

“Are you for real?” Thomas asked. “That’s easy. Fuck Mayor Mills, marry Ruby, and kill Nova. Pass me the green.”

“What? You wouldn’t fuck Ruby?” Tyler asked, tossing him the can.

“Dude, if I marry her she can alway make my food. Be my kitchen bitch or something.” Thomas said.

“You’d kill Nova?” Tyler said.

Thomas shrugged, “I don’t think she’d be very good in bed.”

“Yeah, but fuck Mayor Mills? Are you serious?” Gabe asked.

“She’s a total MILF. Why wouldn’t I fuck her?” Thomas replied.

“I’m sorry, did I just hear one of my illegal taggers call my wife a MILF?” Sheriff Swan asked as she emerged from the shadows.

“Shit,” Tyler swore.

“And I’m no one’s kitchen bitch,” Ruby added, stepping out from behind Sheriff Swan.

“Goddamnit,” Thomas added under his breath.

“No one talks about Nova like that. Ever,” Leroy chimed in, sidling up by the two women.

“This just keeps getting better,” Gabe groused.

“Thomas Gardner, Tyler Owens, and Gabe Dancey. So nice to see you three here. Tagging private property. It looks like you boys just earned yourselves a trip to the station where we  _ all _ know that your fathers and I will come to the agreement of  _ months _ of community service,” Sheriff Swan said. She reached out and grabbed Thomas by the collar of his jacket and brought him close. “And if I ever hear you talking about my wife like that again? Community service and your father’s punishment will be the  _ least _ of your worries.”


	3. GRANDmothers

“They go to bed by nine,” Henry said, listing off instructions, “don’t feed them too much sugar or Lucas will  _ never _ sleep. Lucy handles it pretty well, but if Lucas is up, she’s up. Lucas’ ADHD meds are in the frontmost pocket and he takes those at 10AM-- we’re pretty consistent with it. Oh, and-”

Henry Daniel Mills,” Regina said in her mom voice that Henry recognized from his childhood, “Emma and I are  _ not _ new to motherhood, nor are we even new to watching your children.”

“Yeah, kid,” Emma chimed in, ruffling Henry’s hair, “we can handle two mini yous for a week.”

“They aren’t just mini mes,” Henry reminded her, “they’re also mini Regans.”

“We love Regan almost as much as you,” Regina told him.

“She couldn’t have been that much harder to raise than you,” Emma added, “she’s a sweet woman.”

“Always nice to walk in on a complement of yourself!” Regan said as she brought in Lucy’s duffle bag. “Is he giving you the 3rd degree again?”

“He’s always been a worrier,” Regina replied.

“What! I- no-” Henry spluttered.

“Daaaaaad. We’ll be fine!” Lucas whined, holding Emma’s hand.

“We love Gram and Gran!” Lucy added, hugging Regina.

“You’re children have spoken,” Emma said, trying to stifle a laugh.

“Come on, honey. We need to hit the road,” Regan said, kissing Henry’s cheek.

The four adult exchanged hugs and the two children endured too tight hugs before Henry and Regan were headed out the door.

“Go have a good time, you two!” Emma called after them.

“Now, who’s ready for a week of fun?” Regina asked, grinning.

“We are, we are!” the children chanted.

“Let’s get started, then!”


	4. Family Vacation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Swan-Mills Trio goes on a family vacation to Hawaii so Regina can no-so-subtly see Emma's surfing body.

“We have to go somewhere near the ocean that  _isn’t_  Maine,” Henry demanded.

“Why does it have to be near the ocean?” Regina asked, not looking up from her research.

The Swan-Mills trio had decided that now, after Gideon and the Black Fairy have been neutralized, was the time for a family vacation. Henry knew that his mom had a type: blonde, athletic, and someone good with kids. Ma had all three going for her, but sometimes being the Sheriff of a small town didn’t exactly give her a chance to showcase her athleticism.

“He found out I can surf,” Emma told her casually, as she leafed through a guidebook for Michigan.

This stopped Regina in her tracks. “You can surf?” she asked, trying to sound just as casual.

“Mhm.”

“Well then, maybe Henry is right,” Regina suggested.

Emma looked up from her guidebook. “Are you serious?”

“It might be refreshing to see a side of the ocean that isn’t bleak all the time,” Regina told her, feigning innocence.

Henry smirked, knowing that his plan was working already.

***

After several hours of driving to New York and twelve and a half hours on a plane–complete with an almost-nervous breakdown from Regina– the family finally touched down in Kailua. Though Henry didn’t like to see his mom upset or scared, but he didn’t mind seeing her reach out for support from Emma during the flight.

He definitely knew things might spark between his moms when they barely put up a fight about having to share a bed, while he got his own.

_“The kid kicks in his sleep, Regina.”_

_“Well then_ we’ll _just have to share.”_

The beach was on the agenda for the next day. To avoid being in the water–and to have a prime view of Emma–Regina said she wanted to rest up on the beach.

Emma put on her surf shirt and hit the waves. Henry had to admit, she wasn’t bad at all for being an amateur. She wouldn’t win any contests or anything, but she wasn’t constantly falling.

About half an hour into their beach time Emma jogged up to the towel where Regina was supposedly reading.

“You coming in?” she asked.

“I’m enjoying the sun,” Regina replied.

“I can teach you,” Emma offered. “I’m no expert, but I think I can give you a few pointers.”

Henry, who had come back to shore for a bottle of water, could see the wheels turning in Regina’s mind.

“Alright, we’ll see what kind of teacher you are,  _Ms. Swan_.” She put her book down and Henry took her spot on the towel to watch the events unfold.

He watched her explain everything and even do a few example runs for Regina, but it was when Emma got into Regina’s personal space that he detected the change in body language. Regina became more nervous until Henry saw Emma say something to her.

Out in the water, Emma was telling Regina to relax.

“Relax, there’s nothing to be afraid of. I’m right here if anything happens,” Emma told her.

“You promise?” Regina asked.

Emma nodded and gave Regina’s hand a squeeze.

“I’ll always be here for you.”


	5. Divorced Mommies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Regina and Emma talk about their divorce with Dr. Hopper.

“What brings you two into counseling today?” Archie asked, adjusting his glasses and readying his pen.

“Why do any divorcing couples come to you, Dr. Hopper?” Regina shot back, arms folded against her body tightly.

“Regina, that’s not going to get us anywhere,” Emma berated. “We’re here because Henry’s teacher told us it might be a good idea.”

“Ms. Blanchard rudely insinuated herself into our family business by falsely claiming we’re a bad influence on our son,” Regina said angrily.

“She didn’t say that, Regina, god,” Emma sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. “She thinks he’s having trouble adjusting since we’ve… well, we’ve separated and I’m no longer living at the house.”

“That can certainly take a toll on young children,” Archie chimed in. “How have you two been speaking to him about all of this?”

Emma and Regina exchanged a look.

“We’ve told him that Emma and I just do not mesh anymore. We’ve tried to assure him that it isn’t his fault and no matter what we’ll both still be there for him,” Regina said.

“That’s a good start,” Archie told them, “but a bright young boy like Henry is going to want answers. Have you given him a chance to ask you two questions about the situation?”

“No I suppose we haven’t,” Regina answered.

“Emma? You’re awfully quiet,” Archie noticed.

“I’ve talked to him a bit about it,” she admitted.

“What?” Regina demanded. “You talked to him? Why didn’t you run this by me first?”

“He asked and I answered, Regina! What did you want me to do? Tell him ‘hang on a sec, Henry. I have to go ask the warden if I’m allowed to answer that’?” Emma snapped.

“How dare you-”

“Now ladies, please,” Archie said, trying to calm the situation. “Regina, Emma has the right to answer anything Henry asked and should do so. Emma, as a professional, I hope you don’t say such things about Regina in front of Henry. We wouldn’t want him to become resentful of either one of you.”

“No! I’d never say such a thing in front of him. She’s his mother. He should never have to hear that about her,” Emma replied sincerely.

“The only problem is he’s probably already heard it all,” Regina muttered.

“Why do you say that, Regina?” Archie asked.

“There were… fights. In the months before we started the official process of divorcing,” Regina admitted.

“Oh come on, we always tried to make sure he wasn’t in the house,” Emma pointed out.

Regina raised an eyebrow. “And a month ago?”

“Fuck,” Emma whispered. She leaned her elbows onto her knees and buried her face in her hands.

“What happened?” Archie asked.

“Words were exchanged,” Regina said simply.

Emma straightened quickly, “‘Words were exchanged’? Regina, shit was thrown. Things were broken. We were not thinking about Henry that night at all. We fucked up.”

“I believe talking to Henry about the incident would be your best course of action,” Archie suggested. “If Ms. Blanchard is noticing a difference in Henry’s behavior it could be due to that. Children are also very perceptive and he could be feeling the tension surrounding the both of you.”

“This is a waste of time,” Regina grumbled, reaching for her purse.

“Regina, he has a point,” Emma said, lightly grabbing her arm.

“Don’t touch me!” Regina yelled. The office became eerily silent as Emma quickly yanked her hand away and hung her head in shame.

“Maybe,” Archie probed lightly, “this situation would be helped if we talked through  _why_  you’re getting this divorce?”

“Lack of trust,” Emma said, defeated.

“There wouldn’t be lack of trust if I didn’t think something was going on,” Regina snapped.

“She thinks I cheated on her,” Emma told Archie. “I didn’t.”

“Regina, why are you finding it hard to trust Emma?” Archie asked.

“She’s gone all the time, especially late. She’s very cagey about her whereabouts when I ask, and she’s constantly out with other women,” Regina replied.

“By ‘other women’ she means Elsa,” Emma supplied.

“You two are very friendly, Why is it so crazy that I suspect you two are sleeping together?” Regina growled.

“Because you should take me at my word,” Emma replied. “We took vows, didn’t we?”

“Emma, what-” Emma cut Archie off.

“You know what? Regina’s right. This is a waste of time,” Emma said, tears starting to form. She stood and stormed out of the office and out into the hallway.

“Emma Swan, do  _not_  walk away from me!” Regina called after her.

Emma whirled to face Regina. “I would not have had Henry for us if I wasn’t serious. I would not have elected to raise a child alone, nor would I have made such a life-changing decision if I was not 100% committed– for him, for me.”

This stopped Regina in her tracks. Emma had been there for her when they realized Regina couldn’t conceive like they had been talking about. Before they knew this, Emma had gone on and on about how glad she was that Regina  _wanted_  to be pregnant, because she sure didn’t. Emma gave up her body and her freedom for them as a couple. For their son. For their family.

“I…”

Emma held up a hand. “Please, don’t bother. I still think we should get a divorce. We’re too volatile around each other. It’s not good for us and it’s especially not good for Henry. It would be different if it was still just us and we were in our twenties again, making mistakes. But he’s ten-years-old and has never truly had a stable home, Regina. We owe him this.” Emma slowly reached up a hand and, cupping Regina’s cheek, kissed her softly. “I’ll have the rest of my things packed and out of the house by tomorrow morning.”

As she walked away, Regina hoped that Emma would look back at her–just once– but as she stood in that hallway, Emma left the building, never looking back.


	6. Mommy in Love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The beginnings of love peak through in this SQW prompt between two women bonding over mystery books.

“I’ve told him a thousand times not to climb too high,” Regina said, pacing back and forth.  
“Mrs. Mills-”

“It’s Ms. Mill,” Regina corrected.

“Ms. Mills, he’ll be fine. The doctor said the x-rays came back and it was a greenstick fracture, which is more common in children under 10 due to the fragility of their bones. He’ll be better in no time,” Nurse Swan assured her.

“How much time is ‘no time’?” Regina asked.

“We’ll want to see him back in about two weeks just to make sure it’s healing the way we want it to be healing, but normally the fractures are fully recovered in six to eight weeks,” Nurse Swan said.

Regina scoffed and pinched the bridge of her nose. “I’m going to have a hell of a time keeping him from refracturing anything.”

Nurse Swan laughed. “It sounds like he reads a lot. Maybe a long trip to the library will get you eight weeks worth of books for him.”

Regina looked up. “He talked to you about his books?”

“Mhm,” Nurse Swan nodded.

Regina slowly sat down in one of the plastic chairs, still looking at Nurse Swan in awe. “He hardly talks to anyone about his books. He’s quite a shy boy.”

“Oh,” Nurse Swan said in surprise, “he was very talkative in there.”

“Well Nurse Swan, you seem to have a gift,” Regina said.

The nurse blushed and tucked a strand of hair that had come loose from her ponytail behind her ear. “Nah, I just try to make every patient as comfortable as possible.”

Regina smile at her. “Well thank you for making Henry comfortable.”

Soon, Henry was released to go home. He had a cast and strict instructions not to get it wet. After two days he was getting restless, so Regina decided to take the nurse’s advice and take him to the library.

“You can go into the kid’s section by yourself, but please be careful of your cast,” Regina reminded him. He was going to be six soon and she wanted to be more open to independence, it was just hard since he was her baby boy and always would be. She wandered into an aisle close enough that she could watch Henry, but far enough away that he wouldn’t notice this.

“I see you took my advice,” someone said from the other side of the bookshelf.

Regina jumped, before peering through the books to see Nurse Swan.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to frighten you,” she apologized.

“That’s alright, Nurse Swan, I just wasn’t expecting it, that’s all,” Regina replied.

“It’s Emma,” she said, “I’m off duty.”

“Right, Emma,” Regina corrected.

“I see you let the little man do his own thing,” Emma observed.

“I’m trying to let him be more independent, but I always worry,” Regina admitted.

“Most parents do,” Emma told her, having switched to Regina’s aisle, “but it looks like you’re doing a great job.”

“Emma!” Henry squealed as he raced across the library.

“Hi, bud,” Emma greeted, hugging him as he barreled into her.

“Inside voice, Henry,” Regina reminded him.

“Right, sorry,” he apologized. “Emma what are you doing here?”

“I’m getting a few books. I like mysteries,” she told him.

“Mom likes mysteries, too!” he announced.

“She does, huh?” Emma replied, looking up at Regina. “Maybe we can swap recommendations sometime.”

“She has a whole wall of books,” Henry told her seriously. “You should come over and see it.”

“Henry I wouldn’t want to impose like that,” Emma replied nervously.

“No, he’s right. If you’d like to come take a look you’re more than welcome to come over. Though it’s not as impressive as he’d make you think,” Regina told her.

“I don’t know Ms. Mills, somehow I think it’s as impressive as he says,” Emma bantered back.

“It’s Regina.”

“Regina,” Emma said. There was a silent moment as both adults looked at each other and smiled.

“Mom I have some books I want to check out,” Henry said, reminding Regina why they were at the library.

“Alright Sweetie, we’ll go check them out and then Emma can see the wall of books,” Regina told him.

Henry was pretty excited to have Emma see Regina’s collection. Though he was too young to read most of the long chapter books housed on the shelves, he loved to marvel at them and think about the day that he would be able to read them.

“See? There are so many books!” Henry exclaimed.

Regina looked over and could see that Emma was indeed impressed.

“I don’t know Regina, this does seem like a lot of books,” Emma said.

“We do like to read in this house,” Regina admitted, watching Henry take a book out of the library bag and scamper to his favorite reading spot.

“It definitely helps you escape,” Emma agreed.

“My favorite author at the moment is Dan Brown,” Regina told her, pointing to a row of books.

Emma pulled out a book from her bag. “My go to is G.A. McKevett. She writes this series about a PI and every title is something about food.”

“Maybe we should swap sometime,” Regina suggested. She was really starting to like the other woman. She shared her taste in books and her son loved seeing her. If only…

“I’d like that,” Emma said. “Maybe we could… talk about them over dinner sometime?”

Regina smiled a shy smile and nodded. “I think that can be arranged.”

“Good,” Emma said softly.

Just then Henry came racing back into the study.

“Emma! Do you wanna see my room? I have a wall of books, too!” he exclaimed.

Emma looked to Regina, who nodded. “Sure bud, show me your wall of books.” She threw one last smile over her shoulder while Henry led her upstairs.

Regina smiled back and could feel giddiness in her chest. She was looking forward to that dinner.


	7. Parent Trap

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Henry decides to meddle in his moms' love lives.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a follow-up set five years after chapter 5 "Divorced Mommies".

Henry sat at the counter, waiting. He didn’t have to wait long until Deputy Nolan took a seat right next to him and ordered a coffee.

“Are you sure the storm will be big enough next week?” Henry asked, without looking up from his milkshake.

“No one can really predict the weather,” Deputy Nolan reminded him, “but it looks like a doozy.”

“And Ma will be on duty?”

“I’ll make sure of it,” Deputy Nolan promised. “How are you going to get Regina to the station?”

“Leave that to me,” Henry told him.

“Are you sure this is a good idea? Meddling in your moms’ love life?” he asked.

Henry finally turned to look at the deputy. “David, I’m fifteen and for the five years since the divorce they’be both been miserable. The first two years, okay, I got it. It was awkward and there was still a lot of tension. But now? Only  _ those two _ can’t see what’s right in front of them.”

“Emma told Mary Margaret about the fights when it first started,” Deputy Nolan said, “Emma told her that it was what was best for all of you, especially you. She hated thinking of what it was doing to you.”

“I was ten not that long ago and let me tell you, I don’t remember tension until Ma left the house,” Henry pointed out. “That’s really when Mom thought she was sleeping around.”

David shifted uncomfortably. “You’re very candid about all of this.”

“I have to be. Neither of the other two are being logical about this situation,” Henry said.

“Love isn’t about logic,” Deputy Nolan told him. “Love doesn’t work that way.”

“I have to try,” Henry insisted.

***

The storm arrived as the weatherman predicted. No one was very prepared seeing as the weather channel has a way of never being completely accurate. This worked out well in Deputy Nolan’s favor. He told Emma that he and Mary Margaret hadn’t fortified their basement and asked her to pick up an emergency shift for him. She, of course, readily agreed.

Henry had a plan of his own to get Regina to the station. He knew she was a tad overprotective and had a tracking app on his phone, so he stashed it in one of the filing cabinets that Emma barely opened. He hoped the first person Emma would call for backup on his behalf would be Deputy Nolan since Henry would be with him. He didn’t want to scare his parents  _ that _ much.

***

Regina paced. She’d been pacing for fifteen minutes. The storm outside was getting bad and Henry wasn’t home. She pulled out her phone and saw that he was at the Sheriff station. She tried to convince herself that he was fine-- he was with Emma-- but she was thoroughly convinced that her basement was safer.

She called him, but his phone went straight to voicemail. She looked outside and took a deep breath. God, she hated storms, but this was her baby boy. She ran to the car in her raincoat and drove to the station. When she arrived she was relieved to see Emma… until she didn’t see Henry.

“Where is he?” she asked, slightly panicked.

“Where’s who?”

“Henry!”

“He’s not here? I haven’t seen him all day,” Emma told her.

“The app on his phone says he’s here,” Regina insisted.

“Oh, come on! You still track his phone? He’s fifteen!”

“ _ Exactly _ . He’s fifteen. And besides, I use it for emergencies only.”

“Well it must be wrong because he’s not here.”

Suddenly the wind picked up outside and a loud thundercrack pierced the air.

Regina dropped to the floor with her hands over her head.

Emma was up from her chair in a second and crouching next to her, speaking in a soothing voice, “Regina? Hey, it’s okay.”

Regina hadn’t had this type of comfort in five years. She sat up slowly and pressed herself against the blonde’s firm body. “We still don’t know where Henry is,” she whispered.

“I’ll call David. He might know,” Emma said. She got up, promising she’d be back quickly, and called David.

“Emma?”

“David, have you seen Henry?”

“He was walking by and I saw the storm getting bad not that long ago. He’s here and safe. We just tried to call Regina, but she didn’t answer,” David told her.

“She came looking for him here,” Emma told him. “Thanks for looking out for him. We’ll pick him up when we can.”

“Take your time. It’s really bad out there and I’d rather him even have to spend the night then anyone risking anything.”

“Really? You’re a lifesaver, David.”

“What are friends for?”

The two exchanged goodbyes and Emma returned to Regina, who was still sitting on the floor, but had pressed herself against the wall with her knees pulled up to her chest. Her jaw was tense, eyes unfocused ahead of her, and her right hand wouldn't sit still. Emma could see how hard she was trying to not have a panic attack-- especially in front of her.

Emma sat down next to Regina and wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close again.

Regina turned into the comfort and buried her face in Emma’s neck.

Emma rocked slightly, trying to help Regina calm down.

This was something Emma very quickly learned about Regina when they first met. She hated storms. Not just hated-- she was terrified. She was anxious during light thunderstorms, but with ones like the one outside she was a full blown mess. A month into their relationship there was a horrible storm and Regina, as much as she tried to fight it, couldn’t handle it. Emma had immediately asked her what she needed and did what she could. Regina had thought that the relationship would be over then and there, but it just bonded the pair even more.

“Regina,” Emma called softly, “if we move to the supply closet it might muffle the storm a bit more.”

Regina nodded into Emma’s neck and Emma helped lead her over to the supply closet. There were so many reams of paper, Emma hoped they absorbed the sounds outside.

The two sat there in silence for a few minutes, Regina with her head on Emma’s shoulder and Emma rubbing Regina’s arm. When Regina seemed to be a bit more calm, Emma decided to try and get her mind off of the situation.

“How have you been handling these alone?” Emma asked, knowing full well that since the two had split there had been at least half a dozen of these types of storms.

“I bought noise cancelling headphones,” Regina replied quietly, “I go to the basement and sleep on the pull out couch while listening to music.”

“You know, the first time it happened after we divorced-- oh I’d say about a year and a half after-- I drove to your house,” Emma confessed. “I knew it was going to be bad for you and I was torn between being there for you and leaving you alone like I knew we agreed on.”

Regina shifted to look up at Emma and gave her a small smile. “At the time I either would’ve been very grateful or very angry.”

Emma laughed, “yeah, I figured those were the two emotions you could’ve had.”

“For what it’s worth, I’m grateful you thought of me then,” Regina told her.

Emma gave her a sad smile. “It’s not like I could just forget.”

Regina pulled Emma into a tight hug. “I’m sorry.”

“You never let me feel alone on my birthday, so you must’ve never forgotten either,” Emma replied.

Regina pulled back. “How could I?”

Emma shrugged. “I guess I always thought you’d never consider it your job anymore.”

“It was never my  _ job _ , Emma. I hated seeing you so… so depressed those first few years we were together,” Regina told her. “I knew I never wanted to see you like that again.”

“Having the kid over and you sending him with mountains of food was definitely a shock the first time. Especially since it wasn’t my day to have him,” Emma said. “I’ll admit I teared up when I saw him at my door. You did something special for me every year and I feel like I’ve done nothing for you since… since the divorce.”

“The third year after we separated,” Regina started, “I was up for reelection. I was told you worked your butt off to promote me.”

“You heard about that?” Emma asked. “Well, I didn’t want a different boss. We work.”

There was a tense silence.

“We do as coworkers,” Regina said softly.

“Regina, look,” Emma pulled back so she could look Regina in the eye. “I miss us. And I don’t mean being together or being married-- I still think we made the right decision-- but we were such good friends. We don’t have to be in a relationship to have family outings, or watch movies on the couch, or even go to a freaking PTA meeting together. I miss us as a team. We’ve been avoiding each other for the last five years and I think it’s affecting Henry more than our actual fights.”

Regina sighed and ran a hand through her hair. “I know. I know you’re right. And I haven’t helped the situation much-”

“Hey, neither of us were. Don’t take it all on yourself,” Emma interrupted.

Regina smiled and snuggled into Emma’s side. “I do miss this too, you know.”

“I know,” Emma said quietly, pressing a kiss into Regina’s hair, “but I don’t think I trust myself with you.”

“Trust was my issue, if I remember correctly,” Regina pointed out.

“Yes it was, but I didn’t handle that very well.” Emma paused before getting serious. “I didn’t cheat on you, Regina.”

“I knew that as soon as you brought up giving birth to Henry,” Regina confessed. “I had forgotten in those ten years how much you hadn’t wanted to be pregnant, but you did it for us as a family. You reminded me of that the day we went to Dr. Hopper’s office.”

“The kid may have been a pain in the ass the carry, but he was worth every minute,” Emma said.

“I’m also very grateful that you didn’t fight for full custody,” Regina told her.

Emma furrowed her brow. “Were you afraid I was going to?”

“At the time, yes I was,” Regina replied.

“I never had any intentions of that,” Emma told her. “I never would’ve taken him away from you.”

“It took about a year for that the sink in, but I never did thank you,” Regina said.

“It’s what good coparents do,” Emma pointed out.

“Well, while we didn’t work out as a married couple, I’m glad we can at least be decent coparents.”

“We could be better,” Emma said. “We could try to start next week with a dinner and a movie night?”

Regina looked at Emma and smiled. “I’d like that.”

“Until then, I’m here for you to wait out the storm, okay?”

“Okay,” Regina said, holding onto Emma tight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so proud of myself for actually finishing this SQW and I hope you enjoyed every second of it!


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